Question: Solve for $x$ and $y$ using elimination. ${-2x-3y = -20}$ ${2x+4y = 26}$
Answer: We can eliminate $x$ by adding the equations together when the $x$ coefficients have opposite signs. Add the equations together. Notice that the terms $-2x$ and $2x$ cancel out. ${y = 6}$ Now that you know ${y = 6}$ , plug it back into $\thinspace {-2x-3y = -20}\thinspace$ to find $x$ ${-2x - 3}{(6)}{= -20}$ $-2x-18 = -20$ $-2x-18{+18} = -20{+18}$ $-2x = -2$ $\dfrac{-2x}{{-2}} = \dfrac{-2}{{-2}}$ ${x = 1}$ You can also plug ${y = 6}$ into $\thinspace {2x+4y = 26}\thinspace$ and get the same answer for $x$ : ${2x + 4}{(6)}{= 26}$ ${x = 1}$